Klieg Conjunctivitis
About ' Klieg Conjunctivitis' is an inflammation of the eye contracted from prolonged exposure to actinic or ultraviolet rays. Symptoms are redness and swelling of the eyes. Most often the condition is caused by prolonged exposure to Klieg lights, therapeutic lamps, or acetylene torches. Other names for the condition include Actinic Conjunctivitis, eyeburn, arc-flash, welder's conjunctivitis, flash keratoconjunctivitis, actinic ray ophthalmia, x-ray ophthalmia, and ultraviolet ray ophthalmia. Actinism (which causes Klieg Conjunctivitis) 'is the property of solar radiation that leads to the production of photochemical and photobiological effects. ''Actinism is derived from the Greek word meaning a ray or beam. The word actinism is found, for example, in the terminology of imaging technology such as photography, medicine concerning sunburn, and chemistry concerning containers that protect from photo-degradation. The concept of actinism is applied, for example, in chemical photography and X-ray imaging. Actinic chemicals include silver salts used in photography and other light sensitive chemicals. '''Ultraviolet '''or UV (which causes Klieg Conjunctivitis)' is an electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength from 10 nm (30 PHz) to 380 nm (750 THz), shorter than that of visible light but longer than X-rays. UV radiation is present in sunlight. It is also produced by electric arcs and specialized lights such as mercury-vapor lamps, tanning lamps, and black lights. Although lacking the energy to ionize atoms, long-wavelength ultraviolet radiation can cause chemical reactions and causes many substances to glow or fluoresce. Consequently, biological effects of UV are greater than simple heating effects, and many practical applications of UV radiation derive from its interactions with organic molecules. Suntan, freckling and sunburn are familiar effects of over-exposure, along with higher risk of skin cancer. Living things on dry land would be severely damaged by ultraviolet radiation from the Sun if most of it were not filtered out by the Earth's atmosphere. More-energetic, shorter-wavelength "extreme" UV below 121 nm ionizes air so strongly that it is absorbed before it reaches the ground. Ultraviolet is also responsible for the formation of bone-strengthening vitamin D in most land vertebrates, including humans. The UV spectrum thus has effects both beneficial and harmful to human health. Near-UV light is visible to some insects, mammals, and birds. Small birds have a fourth color receptor for ultraviolet light; this gives birds "true" UV vision. Reindeer use near-UV light to see polar bears, who are poorly visible in regular light because they blend in with the snow. UV light also allows mammals to see urine trails, which is helpful for prey animals to find food in the wild. The males and females of some butterfly species look identical to the human eye but very different to UV-sensitive eyes—the males sport bright patterns in order to attract the females. Most ultraviolet rays are invisible to most humans: the lens on a human eye ordinarily filters out UVB frequencies or lower, and humans lack color receptor adaptations for ultraviolet light, so humans don’t see many of the "light or colors" certain animals see. Under some conditions, children and young adults can see ultraviolet down to wavelengths of about 310 nm and people with aphakia (missing lens) or replacement lens can also see some UV wavelengths. People who don't have lenses often report seeing ultraviolet light that looks "whitish blue" or "whitish violet". This happens because our three color receptors (red, green and blue) are all sensitive to ultraviolet light, so the light comes in as a mixture of the three receptors, with a slight nod to blue side of the spectrum. '''Mothman Witnesses: Klieg Conjunctivitis' Some witnesses of The Mothman, such as Connie Carpenter, suffered from Klieg Conjunctivitis after their encounters with the creature. After her Mothman sighting, Miss Carpenter's eyes were red, swollen and itchy with water coming out of them for two weeks afterwards. She was also one of the few to claim a close look at The Mothman's face. They depicted this eye burn phenomenon with characters in the 2002 Mothman Prophecies Film. Flatwoods Monster Witnesses: Strange Medical Symptoms After encountering a strange creature in Flatwoods West Virginia on September 12 1952, several members of the group reported suffering from medical symptoms which persisted for some time and which they attributed to having been exposed to a mist emitted by the creature. The symptoms included irritation of the nose and swelling of the throat. During the sighting they had detected a pungent mist that made their eyes and noses burn. Lemon suffered from vomiting and convulsions throughout the night, and had difficulties with his throat for several weeks afterward. A doctor who treated several of the witnesses is reported to have described their symptoms as being similar to victims of mustard gas, though such symptoms are also commonly found in sufferers of hysteria, which can be brought on by exposure to a traumatic or shocking event. References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actinic_conjunctivitis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actinism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultraviolet The "Search For The Mothman" Documentary https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flatwoods_monster Category:Mystery